Did you know?
St. Patrick's Society has a resident historian.
Please
feel free to email
any questions to:
Patrick O'Hara,
St. Patrick Society Historian.
| History of the St. Patrick's Society of Montreal | |||
| St. Patrick's Society and the Irish in Montreal | |||
| St.
Patrick's Society of Montreal was founded in March 1834 to provide
charitable, social and educational support to the rapidly growing
Irish population of Montreal.
In the 1840's the Society took a prominent role in alleviating the sufferings of the Irish immigrants who flocked to Canada to escape the ravages of the Great Famine. Since then, the Society has continued to provide a focus for the community, while at the same time offering assistance to the waves of immigrants arriving from Ireland. The history of the Irish in Montreal goes back to the very beginnings of New France when many Irish fled to France, and eventually the colonies, to escape the persecution which followed the Protestant Reformation. Others would follow, especially between 1815-1860, when 60% of the one million immigrants to Canada were from Ireland. There
have been eighty-seven presidents of St. Patrick's Society, many
of whom later became important politicians. Of the six Irish mayors
that the city of Montreal has had, four were also presidents of
the St. Patrick's Society of Montreal. Perhaps the most famous past
member of the society was Thomas D'Arcy McGee, a founding Father
of Confederation. |
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St. Patrick's Society of Montreal, 2005©
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